Oil Painting Battle Glorious First of June 1794 Lord Howe On Ship HMS Queen Charlotte

Antique British Naval Battle Oil Painting Lord Howe HMS Queen Charlotte 1794 After Mather Brown c.1850

An historically significant Victorian British School marine painting depicting Admiral Richard Howe aboard HMS Queen Charlotte during the celebrated Battle of the Glorious First of June, 1794. Executed in oil on metal panel, circa 1850, the composition follows Mather Brown's monumental historical painting preserved in the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.

The reverse retains a rare surviving fragment of an early artists' supplier label, provisionally identified as Winsor & Newton, while the documented provenance traces the painting to a private collection in Conwy, North Wales.

Highlights

• Antique British School naval history painting, circa 1850

• After Mather Brown (1761–1831)

• Original oil on metal panel

• Admiral Richard Howe aboard HMS Queen Charlotte

• Battle of the Glorious First of June, 1794

• Dramatic depiction of the mortally wounded Lieutenant Nevile

• Original composition: National Maritime Museum, BHC2740

• Related to Daniel Orme's published engraving of 1795

• Historic Winsor & Newton artists' supplier label, provisionally identified

• British Royal Arms visible on the damaged label

• Private collection, Conwy, North Wales

• Rogers Jones & Co., 21 January 2025, Lot 79

• Decorative gilt frame

• Framed dimensions: 66.5 × 56.5 × 4.5 cm

• Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution included

Introduction

An evocative nineteenth-century British naval painting commemorating one of the Royal Navy's most celebrated victories during the French Revolutionary Wars.

The composition depicts Admiral Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, on the quarterdeck of his flagship HMS Queen Charlotte on 1 June 1794.

Surrounded by naval officers, soldiers and the casualties of battle, Howe appears amid a scene combining military ceremony, human suffering and the continuing engagement between the British and French fleets.

The present painting is after the celebrated American-born artist Mather Brown, whose original composition was completed around 1794.

Its subject, historical associations and unusual metal support make it an appealing work for collectors of British maritime painting, Georgian naval history and nineteenth-century historical art.

Catalogue Details

Artist: British School, after Mather Brown (1761–1831)

Title: Lord Howe on the Deck of HMS Queen Charlotte, 1 June 1794

Origin: Britain

Date: Circa 1850

Medium: Oil on metal panel

Signature: Unsigned

Subject: British naval history, Admiral Lord Howe, HMS Queen Charlotte and the Glorious First of June

Painting Dimensions: Approximately 39.5 cm W × 29 cm H, as previously catalogued

Framed Dimensions: 66.5 cm W × 56.5 cm H × 4.5 cm D

Frame: Decorative gilt frame

Historical Label: Fragmentary nineteenth-century artists' supplier label, provisionally identified as Winsor & Newton

Catalogue Note

The composition presents an elaborate historical scene aboard the quarterdeck of HMS Queen Charlotte.

Admiral Howe stands towards the left of the principal gathering, dressed in formal naval uniform and wearing a cocked hat.

Nearby stands Sir Roger Curtis, Captain of the Fleet, positioned beside a cannon.

The central drama concerns Lieutenant Nevile of the Queen's Regiment, who was mortally wounded during the engagement.

Lieutenant Walter Lock supports the injured officer while other military personnel attend him.

Among the identifiable figures in Brown's original composition are Captain Tudor, Major Isaac, Sir Andrew Snape Douglas and Graham Eden Hamond.

Douglas, the flag captain of HMS Queen Charlotte, is depicted with a head wound.

Beyond the assembled officers, warships engage amid smoke and cannon fire.

The arrangement places the human consequences of battle at the centre of a composition otherwise commemorating a major British naval victory.

The present nineteenth-century version follows Brown's historical conception, although the precise source used by its unidentified artist has not been established.

The Artist – After Mather Brown (1761–1831)

Mather Brown was born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1761 and subsequently established an artistic career in Britain.

He travelled to London in 1781, studied under the influence of Benjamin West and entered the Royal Academy Schools in 1782.

Brown became known for portraiture and ambitious historical compositions.

He exhibited extensively at the Royal Academy and developed connections with influential patrons, including members of the British royal household.

His appointment as Historical Painter to the Duke and Duchess of York was recorded in the inscription accompanying Daniel Orme's engraving after the Glorious First of June composition.

Brown undertook considerable preparatory research for the original painting, travelling to Portsmouth to examine HMS Queen Charlotte, study participating officers and investigate captured French vessels.

His work combined historical reconstruction with individual portraiture, reflecting the influence of Benjamin West's celebrated history paintings.

Brown died in London in 1831.

The present painting is catalogued as after Mather Brown, rather than as an autograph work by the artist.

Historical Context – The Glorious First of June, 1794

The Glorious First of June was fought in the Atlantic Ocean west of Ushant during the French Revolutionary Wars.

Admiral Richard Howe commanded the British Channel Fleet against the French Atlantic Fleet under Rear-Admiral Louis-Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse.

The British sought to intercept an important French grain convoy sailing from North America.

After preliminary engagements in late May, the opposing fleets met in a major confrontation on 1 June 1794.

Howe directed his ships to break through the French battle line and engage at close quarters.

The British achieved a substantial tactical victory, capturing six French ships of the line and sinking another.

However, the French grain convoy successfully reached France, producing a strategically complex outcome.

The engagement nevertheless became a celebrated British naval victory, commemorated through paintings, engravings, medals and public festivities.

HMS Queen Charlotte – Admiral Howe's Flagship

Launched in 1790, HMS Queen Charlotte was a 100-gun first-rate ship of the line.

She served as Admiral Howe's flagship during the Glorious First of June.

The vessel played a prominent role in the fighting, passing astern of the French flagship Montagne and delivering a powerful broadside.

HMS Queen Charlotte subsequently became closely associated with Howe's victory and the visual commemoration of the battle.

Lieutenant Nevile and the Queen's Royal Regiment

The central wounded figure represents Lieutenant Nevile, also encountered in historical sources as Neville, of the Queen's Regiment.

Detachments of the Queen's (Second) Royal Regiment of Foot served aboard British warships during the French Revolutionary Wars.

According to historical accounts associated with Brown's painting, Nevile was mortally wounded when a cannonball struck his sword, driving part of the shattered weapon into his body.

His death became a significant element of the battle's commemoration.

The regiment subsequently received permission to display a Naval Crown inscribed with the date 1 JUNE 1794 upon its Colours.

This military association adds particular historical interest to the composition.

Admiral Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe (1726–1799)

Richard Howe was among Britain's most distinguished eighteenth-century naval commanders.

Born in London in 1726, he entered the Royal Navy in 1739 and served through several major conflicts.

He distinguished himself during the Seven Years' War and subsequently commanded British naval forces during the American Revolutionary War.

In 1782, Howe successfully conducted the relief of Gibraltar.

He later served as First Lord of the Admiralty before returning to operational command during the French Revolutionary Wars.

His victory on 1 June 1794 established him as a celebrated national figure.

King George III visited HMS Queen Charlotte on 26 June 1794 and presented Howe with a ceremonial sword.

Howe became Admiral of the Fleet in 1796 and was appointed a Knight of the Garter in 1797.

He died in 1799.

The Original Mather Brown Painting – National Maritime Museum, Greenwich

Brown's original painting is preserved in the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, under accession BHC2740.

Completed circa 1794, the monumental oil on canvas measures approximately 259 × 365.7 cm.

The painting was exhibited in London by Daniel Orme in 1795, accompanied by a key identifying the principal figures.

Royal Museums Greenwich records that the original canvas was subsequently reduced on all four sides.

This is an important consideration when comparing later versions, because the contemporary engraving preserves compositional details no longer visible in the surviving canvas.

The present painting reproduces Brown's historical subject on a much smaller metal support.

Daniel Orme's Historic Engraving of 1795

Daniel Orme reproduced Brown's composition as an elaborate published engraving issued on 1 October 1795.

The print was dedicated to the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty and helped establish the composition's wider reputation.

Examples survive in the collections of Royal Museums Greenwich, including PAH7879 and PAI6371, and the Royal Collection Trust.

The engraving represents a possible source for later nineteenth-century painted copies.

Whether the present artist worked from Orme's engraving, Brown's original painting or another intermediary image remains unresolved.

The Historic Winsor & Newton Artists' Supplier Label

The reverse retains an important fragmentary printed trade label incorporating the British Royal Arms.

Comparative research suggests an identification with Winsor & Newton, the London artists' colourmen established in 1832.

The firm supplied artists' pigments, prepared panels and other painting materials.

Historical labels associated with its royal appointments included references to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

The National Portrait Gallery documents comparable nineteenth-century artists' supplier labels.

The present label is substantially deteriorated and its original wording cannot be completely reconstructed from the surviving fragment.

Its identification as Winsor & Newton remains provisional.

The reference to Prince Albert relates to the supplier's historical royal appointment and does not establish ownership of the painting by Prince Albert or the Royal Collection.

Dating

The painting is catalogued as circa 1850.

Its proposed dating is consistent with its nineteenth-century character and the historical use of commercially prepared painting panels.

The surviving supplier label may provide additional dating evidence.

However, a prepared support could have been painted upon after manufacture, and supplier labels could remain in use over extended periods.

The precise execution date therefore remains an informed catalogue assessment.

Comparable Works

Mather Brown (1761–1831)

Lord Howe on the Deck of the Queen Charlotte, 1 June 1794.

Circa 1794, oil on canvas.

National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, BHC2740.

Daniel Orme (1766–1832), after Mather Brown

The Celebrated Victory Obtained by the British Fleet under Earl Howe over the French Fleet on the Glorious First of June 1794.

Published 1 October 1795.

Royal Museums Greenwich, PAH7879 and PAI6371.

Royal Collection Trust

Daniel Orme's engraving after Mather Brown, with associated identification material, RCIN 735027.a and RCIN 735027.b.

These works provide historical and compositional comparisons, not proof of authorship or a direct provenance connection.

Historical Auction Identification

Rogers Jones & Co., Colwyn Bay, offered the painting on 21 January 2025 as Lot 79.

The auction description identified the work as after Mather Brown, unsigned and executed in oil on metal panel.

The painting was recorded as originating from a private collection in Conwy, North Wales.

Provenance

Private collection, Conwy, North Wales.

Rogers Jones & Co., Colwyn Bay, Jewellery, Collectables & Fine Art, 21 January 2025, Lot 79.

Acquired at the above sale by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®.

Original purchase invoice retained, reference 16171, auction reference NV210125.

Earlier ownership has not been established.

Dimensions

Overall Framed Dimensions

Height: 56.5 cm

Width: 66.5 cm

Depth: 4.5 cm

Painting

Height: approximately 29 cm

Width: approximately 39.5 cm

The painting dimensions are taken from the previous auction catalogue and remain subject to physical confirmation.

Framing and Presentation

The painting is housed in a decorative gilt frame.

The traditional presentation complements the historical marine composition.

The frame's original date and whether it was fitted when the painting was executed have not been independently established.

A hanging thread is fitted to the reverse.

Condition Report

Good overall antique condition, with recorded historical cleaning and restoration and age-related frame wear.

The painting retains a clearly legible historical composition.

Previous cleaning and some restoration are recorded in the existing description, although the precise nature and extent of these interventions have not been independently established.

The decorative gilt frame exhibits scuffs, chips and localised losses consistent with age and use.

The reverse bears a deteriorated printed artists' supplier label with significant paper and printing losses.

The label should remain undisturbed pending appropriate conservation advice.

The precise metal composition of the panel has not been technically confirmed.

No independent conservation examination has been undertaken by the dealer.

Prospective purchasers are encouraged to examine the accompanying photographs carefully.

Shipping

Worldwide shipping is available.

Owing to the historic framed presentation of the artwork, it will be professionally packaged using appropriate protective materials and dispatched fully insured.

International buyers are welcome. Please contact us for a destination-specific delivery quotation or to discuss any particular shipping requirements.

Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution

The artwork will be supplied with a Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution issued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®, recording the artwork’s catalogue details, attribution, provenance as stated, exhibition history and details of the sale. This document accompanies the work as part of its ongoing ownership and provenance record.

Attribution and Research

The historical observations, provenance research, attribution analysis, dating and contextual commentary presented within this catalogue entry represent the professional opinion of Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®. They are offered in good faith as informed scholarly assessments based upon the available physical evidence, historic inscriptions, comparative research, published reference material and our experience within the international fine art market.

These observations should be understood as professional opinions rather than definitive statements of fact or guarantees of authorship, attribution, date, origin, provenance or historical interpretation. As with all historic works of art, future documentary discoveries, technical examination, conservation analysis or advances in academic research may refine, expand or revise current interpretations.

Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®

Specialising in carefully curated British and European fine art, antiques and historic works of art.

Every artwork is professionally researched and catalogued using comparative scholarship, published reference material and more than two decades of experience within the international fine art market. We are committed to offering collectors works of artistic and historical merit accompanied by transparent provenance research, detailed catalogue descriptions and professional, client-focused service.

Additional photographs and further information are available upon request.